Ford 1210 Hydrastatic Drive

[rooftrussman]

It's been a while since I've asked questions. I had a starting problem that took a while to figure out but turned out to be a bad cable from + of the battery to the starter. It looked good. Turns out the simple fix was the right one but did lots of guessing before that. I did learn a lot about starters and rewiring harnesses which I guess is not a bad thing.

My currnet issue is a lack of power to the hydrastatic drive. It's a well used tractor with Ford loader and backhoe. That is what I use it for so as long as it gets from here to there, an underpowered drive isn't too much of a problem but hopeful there might be a simple solution. The other hydraulics are fine. I would guess one should be able to get on smooth ground and put the FEL against something solid and in low gear, get the tires to spin. They don't. On an incline of maybe 10%, it is all it can do to go up the hill in low and four wheel drive. Fluid level seems OK but wonder if their are filters separate from the hydraulics of the FEL and BH that might be an issue. I'll start reading through my manuals but thought somebody with more experience than me might give a clue what to look for first. Thanks

 

[SacandagaBrad]

Sounds pretty much normal to me. My TC-24D does the same thing with only loaded tires, FEL, and back blade on it. You have so much traction with the weight of the backhoe, you probably will never spin the tires unless on snow or ice. Low range should get anywhere you need to go, high range is only going to work on relatively level ground. It is the bypass valve on the hydrostatic kicking in when it reaches its limit. I'm assuming even though you can't spin the tires, you have sufficient power to push into a pile with the loader. If not, the bypass valve might be able to be adjusted to give a little more power. I believe the 1210 is a 16 HP machine? Like any machine, every one has its limitations. There are times I wish mine was a gear drive machine, but my knee really appreciates the hydro!

One other thing on the hydro, make sure you're not "flooring" it. The further you depress the pedal, the higher "gear" you are effectively applying to the ground. Lighter touch will give you more power.

Brad

 

[rooftrussman]

I wondered if the weight of the backhoe could make that much difference but I would guess those things aren't light and with the leverage hanging off the back.

 

[stuartshomepc]

My current issue is a lack of power to the hydrastatic drive. It's a well used tractor with Ford loader and backhoe. That is what I use it for so as long as it gets from here to there, an underpowered drive isn't too much of a problem but hopeful there might be a simple solution. The other hydraulics are fine. I would guess one should be able to get on smooth ground and put the FEL against something solid and in low gear, get the tires to spin. They don't. On an incline of maybe 10%, it is all it can do to go up the hill in low and four wheel drive. Fluid level seems OK but wonder if their are filters separate from the hydraulics of the FEL and BH that might be an issue. I'll start reading through my manuals but thought somebody with more experience than me might give a clue what to look for first. Thanks

Has this been an issue from day one? or did it just creap up?. If it has been a while since you have changed fluid and the filters it would be a good time to try that. And take a look at the fluid as it comes out to make sure that there are no metal shavings in it. If it has a lot of hours on it the HST may just be wearing and the output will be lower than when it was new.

You may be asking a lot from a 16 hp engine. The weight of the FEL and Backhoe is significant. My 1620 with a 27 hp engine struggle a bit going up a moderate grade (10 ft rise over 30 ft) in Medium range on the trans. I can only have the HST pedal about 1/2 way down or it bogs down a lot. If I have a bucket full of dirt I have to use low, with lots of throttle.

As far as spinning the wheels while picking up dirt with the FEL goes, if I am in medium range on the trans mine would rather bog down and nearly stall before it would spin the wheels. It is a rare occurrence in low that they spin. I've had them spin on asphalt but not on dirt where they have more traction.